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Senior applications scientist vs postdoctoral associate

The differences between senior applications scientists and postdoctoral associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior applications scientist and a postdoctoral associate. Additionally, a senior applications scientist has an average salary of $105,538, which is higher than the $54,350 average annual salary of a postdoctoral associate.

The top three skills for a senior applications scientist include software development, data collection and next-generation sequencing. The most important skills for a postdoctoral associate are patients, TIP, and data analysis.

Senior applications scientist vs postdoctoral associate overview

Senior Applications ScientistPostdoctoral Associate
Yearly salary$105,538$54,350
Hourly rate$50.74$26.13
Growth rate17%17%
Number of jobs56,96618,093
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 49%Doctoral Degree, 47%
Average age4141
Years of experience44

What does a senior applications scientist do?

A senior applications scientist imports and exports data as well as managing user interface security. They must identify issues in their company's database system and resolve them. They are also responsible for designing equipment to automate database systems.

What does a postdoctoral associate do?

A postdoctoral associate is responsible for researching to support scientific claims and theories by collecting evidence and information to answer scientific questions. Postdoctoral associates must have excellent communication skills, both oral and written, to interact with people and document investigation findings. They also utilize laboratory tools and equipment for scientific researches, conduct field investigations, and interview participants. A postdoctoral associate designs comprehensive research models to discuss results with the panel and the team efficiently and accurately.

Senior applications scientist vs postdoctoral associate salary

Senior applications scientists and postdoctoral associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

Senior Applications ScientistPostdoctoral Associate
Average salary$105,538$54,350
Salary rangeBetween $69,000 And $159,000Between $39,000 And $74,000
Highest paying CityRohnert Park, CABerkeley, CA
Highest paying stateRhode IslandMaine
Best paying companySchrödingerArgonne National Laboratory
Best paying industryManufacturingEducation

Differences between senior applications scientist and postdoctoral associate education

There are a few differences between a senior applications scientist and a postdoctoral associate in terms of educational background:

Senior Applications ScientistPostdoctoral Associate
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 49%Doctoral Degree, 47%
Most common majorChemistryChemistry
Most common collegeDuke UniversityDuke University

Senior applications scientist vs postdoctoral associate demographics

Here are the differences between senior applications scientists' and postdoctoral associates' demographics:

Senior Applications ScientistPostdoctoral Associate
Average age4141
Gender ratioMale, 67.1% Female, 32.9%Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 26.3% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 39.4% White, 42.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between senior applications scientist and postdoctoral associate duties and responsibilities

Senior applications scientist example responsibilities.

  • Manage study protocols and study conduct, intimately involve in the toxicology and pharmacokinetic study protocol development process.
  • Design, develop and implement DNA base assays and immunoassays.
  • Subject matter expert for applications of a pathogen detection system base on principles of PCR and mass spectrometry.
  • Develop, validate and implement robust methods for pharmacokinetic, immunogenicity (ADA) and immunodepletion ELISAs, and cell based-bioassays.
  • Develop novel applications for FDSS6000 HTS instrument.
  • Conduct genotyping and phenotyping of models as required.

Postdoctoral associate example responsibilities.

  • Develop and manage third party claim investigations and contractor remedial oversight for various insurance companies.
  • Co-Authore NIH grant proposal on membrane protein folding.
  • Participate in writing research grant applications including NIH and NSF.
  • X-ray protein crystallographic studies on the structures of antibodies and DNA.
  • Purify DNA from subject blood samples and organize the genome screen.
  • Complete mice handling training and currently using CRISPR technology to knockout genes in cell lines.
  • Show more

Senior applications scientist vs postdoctoral associate skills

Common senior applications scientist skills
  • Software Development, 16%
  • Data Collection, 10%
  • Next-Generation Sequencing, 9%
  • Data Analysis, 5%
  • Customer Support, 5%
  • Technical Support, 5%
Common postdoctoral associate skills
  • Patients, 8%
  • TIP, 7%
  • Data Analysis, 6%
  • Biomedical, 5%
  • CRISPR, 5%
  • Python, 4%

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